Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus: Season 8 Volume 2

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 (single issues) #21-40

by Joss Whedon

Creator Joss Whedon's official sequel to Season 7 of the television series continues in this second of two volumes that contain the entirety of the Chosen One's eighth season of fighting demons and dark forces to save the world and mankind.

This oversized omnibus edition includes the last four arcs of the Season 8 series along with one-shots and short stories written by Joss Whedon (The Avengers), Scott Allie (Abe Sapien), Steven S. DeKnight (Pacific Rim: Uprising), Jane Espenson (Once Upon a Time), Drew Goddard (The Martian), Drew Z. Greenberg (Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Jim Krueger (X-Men), Jeph Loeb (Lost), Brad Meltzer (The House of Secrets), and Doug Petrie (American Horror Story), with art by the acclaimed Georges Jeanty (Serenity), as well as Karl Moline (Fray), Cliff Richards, Camilla d'Errico, and more. Also included in this volume is a cover gallery showcasing all of the variant covers that were produced for the comics and collections.

Buffy experiences Big Bad Twilight's overwhelming reach through the strange and sudden mass popularity of vampires (they even have a spokesperson with a reality TV show, Harmony Kendall!) that leads Buffy and her Slayer army to come under public scrutiny. As the world's distaste for Slayers grows, Buffy takes her troops to a refuge in the Tibetan mountains, where she hopes to receive some help from longtime friend--and werewolf--Oz. Following a losing battle against Twilight's insurmountable army when their location is discovered, Buffy finds herself imbued with mysterious new superpowers. As she tries to pick up the pieces in the aftermath, she discovers allies gone missing and unexplained massacres of Slayer squads around the globe. This leads Buffy straight to Twilight for a confrontation that rocks the earth's foundation . . . Then in their Season 8 debut, Angel and Spike come to Buffy, each with vital information that guides her back home to Sunnydale. While the remaining Slayer squads fight an onslaught of demons raining down across the earth, Buffy faces the ultimate betrayal and suffers through sacrifice as she scrambles to finally put an end to Twilight and save the world from complete destruction. The losses are great, and when the dust settles, everyone and everything will be different . . .

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Fiction, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, LGBT, Vampires

584 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 20, 2018

About the author

Joss Whedon (born Joseph Hill Whedon) is an American screenwriter, executive producer, film and television director, comic book writer, occasional composer, and actor, and the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures.

He is best known as the creator and showrunner of the television series 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003)', 'Angel (1999–2004)', 'Firefly (2002)' and its film follow-up 'Serenity (2005)', and 'Dollhouse (2009–2010)', as well as the web-series' 'Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (2008)'. Whedon co-wrote and produced the horror film 'The Cabin in the Woods (2012)', and wrote and directed the film adaptation of Marvel's 'The Avengers (2012)', the third highest-grossing film of all time.

Many of Whedon's projects have cult status and his work is notable for portraying strong female characters and a belief in equality.

credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joss_Whedon

Reviews

[Completely Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this!

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Season 8 concludes with shocking reveals, a major death and a game changing ending. The latter half of the season has a more epic feeling and I was always eager to keep reading more but it still lacked that spark and authenticity. Without the restraints of a TV budget things can get a bit OTT but hopefully season 9 will correct the course somewhat.

[Lorena Szczepanik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jestem bardzo zawiedziona 😔 cała końcówka tego sezonu zmiotła mnie z planszy tym jak głupie są wszystkie rozwiązania tych wątków
Still będę czytać bo za bardzo kocham postacie i liczę, że coś się zmieni 😭

[Cláudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amazing volume 1 and then:



The entire time. [Spike's moments excluded]

[stories_and_roses · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall, I really enjoyed it! The plot was a bit weird, but I still love Buffy and co. enough to excuse it. Also felt like there were some really strong standalone arcs.

Story Reviews:

Harmonic Divergence - 3 stars - I dunno, this was interesting but I don't really like Harmony enough for her to sustain a story, and I found the other girl somewhat shoehorned in. However, the story was generally interesting enough, and the idea of a vampire reality show was fun.

Swell - 4 stars - I really enjoyed the lesbian conversation, and the vampire cats were funny, but the plot still seemed a little funky, given it was centered around them fighting Twilight's vampire stuffed cats which hoped to kill them.

Predators and Prey - 5 stars - I really liked this one, actually. Buffy and Andrew don't interact that much, which was fun, and watching the Slayers fight against Simone Doeffler was also cool.

Safe - 5 stars - I love the complexity! This story was really interesting to me, ranging from its connection to past events, development of Faith and Giles (who I haven’t seen for a while, although I am sad Buffy and Giles haven’t worked things out), to the interesting morally gray area of people saving themselves by feeding the monster slayers to keep it alive; but also keeping an evil force at bay and dealing with the illogical criticism of the masses consuming Harmony’s TV show. Loved it.

Living Doll - 4 stars - Loved the Buffy/Dawn development and resolution of Dawn's storyline (which led to significant character development). Felt it was somewhat lacking in plot, with only the living doll and a few easily killed vampires.

Harmony Bites to Vampy Cat Play Friend - 5 stars - I loved how they switched it up, even if it didn't really contribute to the plot all that much.

Retreat (Part 1-2) - 4 stars - I am interested in where the story is headed, and glad Buffy and Giles finally made up, along with all of the groups finally reuniting and the villains consolidating. It seems Twilight is getting closer! The discussion of morality in magic and slayers is certainly interesting (although I’m still rooting for Buffy’s team) and I am also excited to see how meeting up with Ox again will turn out.

Retreat (Part Three and Four) - 5 stars - To be honest, enjoying the new style of fighting without magic and interested where the goddess storyline is going. Also glad Faith and Buffy are finally solving their differences, and that Willow is working through her own struggles with darkness and backlash for Season 6. Andrew narrating was, as always, fun too.

Retreat (Part 5) - 5 stars - Definitely intense, loving the fighting vibes and Buffy's lines, along with the Warren/Amy argument. Worried about how everyone was imprisoned by Twilight, though. Intense.

Turbulence - 4 stars - I liked almost everything about this, from Riley and Buffy's conversation to the final dealing with of Xander and Dawn's relationship to Willow getting her powers back and talking to Oz, along with Buffy flying (cool). However, I did think Buffy saying she had feelings for Xander was stupid, and it felt random to me, which is the only reason why I took a star off.

Commitment Through Distance, Virtue Through Sin - 5 stars - I enjoyed the backstory on Riley and Angel and how Angel ended up as Twilight, along with how Riley ended up separated from Sam and working as a spy for Buffy with him. Also interested in how this is going to play out, given it seems that Angel feels he doesn't have a choice but to work against her to save her.

Twilight (Buffy Has F#c$ing Superpowers) - 5 stars - Interesting twist in Buffy sucking powers from the dead slayers. Things ain't looking great, but I'm interested in how Amy, Warren, and the General teaming up with the good guys (although I'm still a little suspicious of them) will go.

Twilight (The Master Plan) - 5 stars - Interesting conversation between Buffy and Angel, although I’m still not completely sure his actions were justified, or that Buffy should go back to him this quickly. Was an interesting scene, though, and the powers are fun.

Twilight (Them F#c$ing) - 4 stars - A little confused and a little strange, but definitely interested in the way that they created another universe to usher the demons back in. Does create a unique conflict of interest, given Buffy’s powers are what is bringing this out. Also wondering what role Spike plays, considering they specifically brought him up.

Twilight (The Power of Love) - 4 stars - I enjoyed Angel and Buffy spending time together, but they’ve always been tragic and can’t really catch a break, so it seemed appropriate. I’m also interested in how this storyline will end up. Also, excited Spike is back!

Last Gleaming (Part One) - 5 stars - This was certainly interesting and solid twist ending with the reintroduction of the master. Interested in how the seed of magic will play out, although I'm still finding the plot of this season a bit strange (although not much weirder than the first or initiative, to be honest).

Last Gleaming (Part Two) - 5 stars - Definitely an interesting mixture of plot points, along with Buffy's lingering feelings for both Angel and Spike. Also enjoyed the different plots, including Angel fighting (and later being confronted by Twilight), Willow realizing she would have to lose all magic to save the world, and Spike and Buffy being introduced to the Master again.

Last Gleaming (Part Three) - 4 stars - Certainly interesting, and the pressure for the battle is ramping up, with unlikely allies (I.e. The Master) and enemies (I.e. Angel and Willow (kinda)). Definitely interested to see how this unfolds.

Last Gleaming (Part Four) - 5 stars - Loved the drama and the intense nature of the entire fight. Definitely interested to see how the loss of all magic unfolds. Worried about Giles and Buffy 😞.

Last Gleaming (Part Five) - REALLY good ending! Despite how depressing it was to see both Angel and especially Buffy being beaten down by the world due to factors outside of their control, Buffy, as always, showed her strength. Definitely a little grumpy at Willow, but also glad Spike came through. Interested to see the fallout in Season 9! Giles dying hasn’t really hit me yet though 😭

[Edward Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as strong as the first volume, and for new readers the 'big reveal' is spoiled by a badly placed Riley Special. Definitely worth a read for die hard fans.

[Drululu · Rating 1 out of 5]

A total mess.
Normalmente no me cuesta seguir leyendo cómic porque resultan muy amenos entre lecturas pero la verdad que no tenía muchas ganas de coger este a pesar de ser de Buffy porque el primero me resultó muy meh.

Lamentablemente ha sido peor. El argumento un desastre, se narran cosas muy rápidas, otras muy lentas, y lo del destino y los seres superiores, además de repetitivo me resulta muy conveniente para no explicar las cosas.

Los personajes parecen metidos con calzador (por qué twilight tiene que ser Ángel), no se comportan muy normal (a Buffy le gusta Xander? sí claro) y ni la aparición de Spike puede remontar las cosas.

Por último, la muerte de Giles ha sido muuuy gratuita. No me importa que mueran personajes pero así sin más, por Ángel para que parezca más traumático y luego tampoco le das más relevancia, no me convence.

Voy a seguir porque he oído que mejora y quien sabe a lo mejor en los siguientes encuentran un argumento de verdad porque esto ha sido horrible y no le hace justicia. Es como si no supieran qué hacer y han metido todo lo que se les ha ocurrido sin coherencia alguna.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part of Season 8 was pretty solid...

Now, we're about 22 issues (almost 2 years) into the Season 8 story and things start getting wonky. There's something to be said for budget restraints in a TV season. Without it, your ideas can be ANYTHING (but are they grounded in anything solid in your story?). We've still got the back half of the Buffyverse cast to reintroduce in this collection. It's a bit all over the place...kind of like my review here.

Thoughts:
- Harmony has a show on MTV (not connected to her appearances on the 'Angel' TV series?)
- Oz has made a family in Tibet
- Riley Finn is a free agent in this war
- Dawn breaks the Thricewise curse (having been a giantess, a centaur, and a living doll)
- A 'Scooby Gang' member makes out with Dawn (thus being labeled a cradle robber)

Twilight's identity is revealed, the universe is imperiled, and we get more Angel/Buffy/Spike entanglement...
Does it ever end? HA!
=====
Bonus: Part of this season was written bad Brad Meltzer, thriller novel writer extraordinare

[Jean-Paul Keulen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really, really liked Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 Omnibus, Volume 1. In fact, after having read it a second time, I started thinking 'I'm enjoying this series so much, shouldn't I just slap a five star rating on it?' However, the second volume was a bit of a letdown. The ending of the main story is epic alright, but also too weird and confusing for its own good. It's cool you can make anything happen in a comic, of course, but a little restraint would have been nice. A few of the earlier storylines didn't work for me either; most notably the 'Retreat' section. Another thing: there are so many familiar faces in here, it almost felt a little desperate. As if the creators thought this comic-only sequel needed every link to the tv series possible to be considered 'legit'.

[Muriel Unseth]

I like Buffy. I do. But this was a MESS. Buffy goes to Scotland, London, New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Tibet, the center of the earth, the future, space, then rips a hole in the universe and builds a new one? The whole time there's this nagging sense-- the same sense that really bothers me about The Avengers franchise, now that I think about it-- that the scale is just getting TOO BIG. And it was really satisfying to turn the final page and hit that afterword where Joss Whedon admits that he got a little high on the idea of no pesky budget constraints, and that the next time around is going to get us back to that mysterious core of what made the show so fabulous.

"No matter how interesting the world stage or mystical dimensions can be, Buffy's best when she's walking that alley, dusting vamps, and nursing a pouty heart. We're not going back to square one, but our square will definitely have a oneishness to it."

...so I guess, like Buffy, I'll be back. (Twice!)

[Tori · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reeeally seemed like they wrote themselves into a corner with the time travel and the fate stuff, and they ended up leaning really hard into the "fate" part of it and taking away everyone's agency to make Twilight and Buffy just do nonsense to drive the plot toward...nothing? ...Like, none of the plot points were actually pointing toward the conclusion. Weird and disappointing. AND HOW DARE THEY DO THAT TO GILES. I've read enough spoilery summaries of the comics to know they bring him back (kind of), but it was still like the final straw of violent shocking twists that don't actually make sense. Definitely way less fun than the first half of Season 8, and the blood and (censored) cursing and (mostly censored) sex seemed even more gratuitous. :/

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was a big book with lots of bits to it. The book itself was good, as big as it was, it wasn't quite too big. Part of that was probably being paperback versus hardback. The paper quality was fine though - so it should have been even heavier. Readable throughout and with good art. The plot was the weakest point. The goal was clearly to do stuff you would never have paid to do in live action, but in the comic world it is just art. But I would have preferred though focus on the extended cast and not on changing the world completely - and presumably simplifying the world at the same time. Still all in all a good re-read.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this ending of the season. I really did.

I just feel like they really went far afield. The ideas earlier in the season were big. They did things that you couldn't really do in a TV series. However, they all stayed true to the characters and the story.

Angel and Buffy sexing a new world into existence? Spike as the Deus Ex Machina with his group of aliens and his space ship?

Come on guys. Buffy fans deserve better than this.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

At times pitch perfect in how it captures the voice of the original show, and at others feels like fan fiction. With the writers free to plot out stories with no budget, the narrative overall can be a bit unwieldily and exhausting, and makes for pages that feel cluttered with exposition and doesn't let the poppy artwork breathe. I didn't love all the plot revelations of major characters, but thought the ending left Buffy in a place that was interesting enough that I'd want to read season 9.

[Ashley Frank · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 not bad, I enjoyed it, but there were parts that were hard to get through.
That ending... I’m so upset.
I get it. It’s a great way to end the, “you have to keep getting bigger” big bad thing. But... idk where they go from here and... I’m not sure I’m up to it. Not right away at least. I’m in mourning.
As alway, the art is beautiful!

[Noah Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took me a very long time to read this so it's sort of a tough one to rate. I really enjoyed the last several chapters, and while I liked the first half as well I found it a bit scattered and confusing. The writers are still nailing the character's voices though, and I like the art style well enough.

[Angela Natividad · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a whole lot of unexpected bonkers in this. I *think* it was about exploring the limits and possibilities of power in this world, stretching the elastic as far as it could go. And it got pretty far. It took us all the way back home.

[Relena_reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

When on basically admits this in the epilogue but it's clear from early on that he didn't really know where this was going at multiple points and it got really off the rails. When it's good it's very good, but when it's mediocre it's bad.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

This jumped the shark—badly—with the Buffy and Angel fuck a new dimension into existence/seed of magic thing. I will say The ending redeemed it some and is a good setup for Season 9.

It’s just not great when Xander, Dawn, and Andrew become the least annoying characters.

[Katrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

First half was great and then went downhill from there. I'm thinking about stopping here, is it worth it to read the rest?

[Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know this half of the season is polarizing, and I definitely found myself losing the thread of the many plots as I went, but I didn't hate it any more than I disliked the first half of Season 8.

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Season 8 had a different spin to it. Its the same characters as the television series in what feels like a fan fiction.

[Amanda Nolan · Rating 2 out of 5]

honestly this was a mess

[Nikki Norell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part was better. Still a good read but I'm glad they got rid of most of the premises at the end of this season. The next one will probably deserve more stars for that reason alone.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sigh. This volume fell way off.

[Samantha Matherne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This second half of Buffy season 8 was truly epic with hints at bringing the Buffyverse back to some aspects of its roots in future comics.

[Asher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the installments of the first volume - it brought me back home to the Buffyverse. The second volume is still fun, but somewhere along the way, the storyline goes a little bonkers.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well that sure got complicated.

[Maïlys · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the 2nd part a bit better than the first one, but i have to say, i still don't find exactly what made me fall in love with the tv show in the first place.

[CozyReaderKelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this quite as much as the first half of season 8. I still liked following our characters and seeing some of the people from the show come back. But the story started to go in a really crazy direction and I didn't like that as much.